The former US president ripped his successor on the second anniversary of the debate which doomed his 2024 re-election campaign
Published 28 Jun, 2026 20:09
US President Joe Biden and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump participate in the CNN Presidential Debate at the CNN Studios on June 27, 2024 in Atlanta, Georgia. © Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Former US President Joe Biden has called Donald Trump a “loser,” accusing his successor of narcissism, vanity, and “brazen, blatant corruption.” The remarks came on the second anniversary of his fumbled debate performance against Trump, which ultimately led to him dropping his bid for re-election.
Biden delivered the attack at the Maryland Democratic Party’s gala event at a casino on Saturday, where candidates were on the campaign trail ahead of November’s mid-term elections.
He berated Trump over “his deliberate distortion and destruction of NATO” as well as what he described as “vanity projects.”
The ex-US president recalled that Trump had torn down the East Wing of the White House to make room for his ballroom, put his name on the Kennedy Center, planned to build an arch in his own honor, and even hired “his own pool guy to fix the reflecting pool” at the Lincoln Memorial.
“Whoa, what a loser,” Biden quipped.
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Biden was referring to Trump’s $14-million repainting of the Lincoln Memorial pool, which was followed by repeated algae blooms after the repairs. The contract – which was being fulfilled at a frantic pace – also went, without competitive bidding, to a firm that had previously worked on a pool at one of Trump’s golf clubs.
The former US president also accused Trump of “corruption on a scale never seen before in American history in any administration,” claiming he had made billions of dollars since his return to the White House.
Biden also voiced outrage over the Trump administration’s plans to pay compensation to those who claim to have been wrongfully targeted during the January 6 Capitol Hill riots. The ex-US leader suggested that instead of enjoying payouts, these people should be “put in jail for a long, long, long time.”
While Biden branded Trump a “loser,” it was he who was widely ridiculed over his June 2024 debate performance against the Republican nominee. At the time, Biden – already beset by public concerns about his age and fitness – appeared confused and lost his train of thought on several occasions.
Just days after the debate disaster, congressional Democrats began publicly urging him to drop out. Biden ultimately withdrew the following month and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, who went on to lose the election to Trump.
